Long live the Kings

In theaters Friday: The Host, GI Joe: Retaliation, The Place Beyond the Pines [limited]

New on Blu-ray: Lincoln, Killing them Softly

Originally titled Toy’s House when it became a fan favorite at Sundance in January, the back-to-nature, coming-of-age dramedy The Kings of Summer now has a tantalizingly spare first clip for consumption and a release date—May 31—albeit in predictably limited fashion.

Inspired by Henry David Thoreau, and, you know, being really angry at the parental units, this indie film follows three youths who leave their guardians for the wild woods to live off the land and build a house and a world they can call their very own.

Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts, best known for Funny or Die Presents, Kings looks like an emotional and humorous snapshot and the wild, free young taking ownership of their lives and creating a new lens through which to see the world and, quite possibly, their futures. Fans of Stand By Me, The Goonies and Where the Wild Things Are should find plenty to enjoy here, and the film seems to have an aesthetic kinship with recent Cannes hit Mud—starring another clutch of young boys plus Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon. Find that trailer here.

Supporting the young leads of The Kings of Summer are some television’s best character actors, including Mad Men and Community kewpie Alison Brie, stone-faced Parks & Recreation scene-stealer Nick Offerman, and 24‘s uber-quirky techie Mary Lynn Rajskub. But this first teaser is all about the boys of youth, their sticks, and a surprisingly tribal groove: